Alaska moves toward August vote on legal pot

Feb. 4, 2014
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Marijuana is displayed through a magnifying glass inside the Evergreen Apothecary in Denver, Colo., on Jan. 9, 2014. Colorado voters approved legalization last year, and Alaska voters may get that opportunity in August. / Matthew Staver Bloomberg

by William M. Welch, USA TODAY

by William M. Welch, USA TODAY

Alaska could be the next state to reconsider the prohibition on marijuana, following legalization votes by Colorado and Washington last year.

Alaska elections officials posted data Tuesday showing that a petition for a statewide vote on marijuana legalization has gained enough signatures and met legal thresholds needed to put the issue before voters.

Under Alaska law, the petition when officially certified would appear on the Aug. 19 primary ballot. No formal opposition to the initiative has emerged thus far.

Taylor Bickford, spokesman for an Anchorage-based organization that is behind the ballot drive, said that though petitions are still being counted, the state has reported 31,593 signatures are qualified, more than the 30,169 needed.

"Based on the Division of Elections numbers, it appears Alaskans will have the opportunity to replace failed policies of marijuana prohibition with a system where marijuana is regulated and taxed like alcohol,'' Bickford said.

Mason Tvert, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, which is pushing to drop legal bans on marijuana, said Alaska was poised to become the third state to vote to legalize pot. He pointed to independent polling from a year ago showing a majority of Alaskans surveyed supported making marijuana legal, along with regulation and taxation.

The plant with psychoactive properties remains illegal under federal law, which classifies marijuana in a list of banned drugs along with heroin and other narcotics.

"Voters are quickly coming to realize that marijuana is not remotely as harmful as they were once led to believe,'' Tvert said. "If voters take an objective look at the evidence, they will likely arrive at the conclusion that marijuana prohibition has been just as wasteful and problematic as alcohol prohibition.''

The Alaska initiative is in line with those approved by voters in Colorado and Washington last year and would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of pot and as many as six plants. It would place regulation of sales in the hands of the state alcohol control board or a new marijuana control board, if the legislature establishes one.

Bickford said dropping marijuana prohibition is in line with Alaska voters' preference for personal freedom.

"Alaskans are watching what's happening in those states and understanding that the sky is not falling,'' he said.

While the outcome has not yet been officially certified, Bickford said there are still some 6,000 signatures yet to be counted. The campaign submitted more than 46,000 signatures on Jan. 8.

"Based on the numbers we're seeing today we know Alaskans will have the chance to vote on this in August,'' he said.